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March 29 marked exactly one year since British Prime Minister Theresa May invoked Article 50 of the Treaty of Lisbon, thus launching the formal two-year legal process by which the United Kingdom will withdraw from the European Union.

Once finalized, this treaty will establish the rights and obligations of both parties on a range of issues, including the "Brexit bill" – that is, the U.K.'s outstanding liabilities from its time as a member of the bloc – as well as the rights of EU citizens living in the U.K., and vice versa.

EU and U.K. negotiators have also agreed to a 21-month transition phase, from March 29, 2019, to Dec. 31, 2020, during which time the U.K. will effectively remain a EU member state, albeit without representation in the European Parliament or any other EU decision-making bodies.

Since the U.K.'s general election last year, and following a series of political speeches by May, the EU has finally begun to understand what the current British government envisions for Brexit and the future EU-U.K. relationship.

I am confident that reprising an association-agreement model that has proved successful in the past would allow the EU and the U.K. to enjoy a deep special partnership well into the future.